Arsonist targets gay Edmond, OK man

An Edmond, OK man awoke in the wee hours on the morning of July 21st to a loud noise and ran outside of his house to find two men dressed in black and wearing face masks beating on his car. He said he ran to approach these two men for vandalizing his car and to protect his property.

According to the car and homeowner, Jon Ferguson, as he got close to the car, one man ran off into the darkness, the other threw something into a window of the car. According to him, the vandals had broken out the window.

He went on to say that suddenly the car BURST into flames and the car alarm went off. The loud noises caused his roommates to come running out to help. One tried to douse the fire with a hose – the gas meter was just 10 feet from the car.

“The car just blew up, then he [the other masked man] took off too. In the instant I smelled gas, but I didn’t know if it was the flames that hit me or what it was,” said Ferguson. “Right when that happened, the flames hit me; I ripped my shirt off, ran in my house and jumped in the shower.” Ferguson said he then called 911.

Police, fire & ambulance showed up. Ferguson was taken to the emergency room to be treated for his injuries and only then found out there had also been offensive anti-gay graffiti written on his car.

“My friends were there with me and my mother and father had shown up. Two fire inspectors, they came in to talk to me. One Fire Inspector asked me if there was any graffiti on my car [before the incident]. One Fire Inspector told me then the word fag had been written on the back of it.”
Ferguson said he just lost it at that point. He knew he had been targeted due to his sexual orientation and that had never happened to him before.

“Nobody has a right to judge me. Nobody is justified to judge somebody for who they lay in bed with. It’s almost not worth being proud of who you are and trying to show you’re gay because stuff like this really does happen. I’ve always seen it on the news that kids are dying and stuff because they’re being bullied and you understand why kids don’t come out of the closet.”

Ferguson has been out for six years and said that night, for the first time, he felt like he needed to hide. He went from the hospital to his parents’ house in the country to stay the night just to feel “safe.”

“I wasn’t flaunting it or anything. I’m trying to be me, but it’s almost not worth it. It’s like I need to fake being happy with a female just to where the world accepts me and I don’t want to do that.”

Ferguson lives in a nice middle-class neighborhood and describes his neighbors as being friendly. Most of them know him and his roommates and feel they all get along well in the neighborhood.
The Edmond resident suffered first and second degree burns on 36% of his body; mostly on his face, some on his arms and chest. The incident singed his shirt on to his chest.

The Oklahoma City Fire Department is investigating the fire and right now the case is considered to be an act of arson. Chief Homer Jones tells News 9 (in Oklahoma City) investigators with the fire department plan to interview Ferguson to obtain additional information and details, but right now there are no suspects.

Chief Jones said if it is a hate crime the Oklahoma City Fire and Police Departments would continue to conduct the investigation.

Cimarron Alliance Executive Director Scott Hamilton released this statement to the Gayly:
“When anyone is victimized in this way, it is a tragedy. When it is compounded by hate based only on sexual orientation, it victimizes an entire community. This horrific incident is a sad and vivid reminder that Oklahoma City’s LGBT community is still not fully accepted. Cimarron Alliance will work diligently with authorities to make certain those responsible for this hate-based crime are punished to the fullest extent of the law. Hate is not an Oklahoma value and those responsible for this crime must be brought to justice.”

Ferguson said in conclusion if he were to get a chance to speak to the person who set his car ablaze, “Why? What did I do to you? Why would you do something like that to me? Granted, it’s just a car – and are you trying to make a statement that gays don’t have the same rights as you do? Why would you do what you did and why me? Not that someone else deserves it. But why me?”

If you have any information about this crime, please call the Oklahoma City Fire Department at (405) 297-3321 or Oklahoma City Police at (405) 297-1000.